Notes: Continue to discuss the top 5 actors/actress list. We'll leave the list up until a new discussion for Saturday morning. There is a growing discussion of women's role in films. This means we need to hear from the ladies on the subject too.
Also, things are happening with our Twitter account (@BeyondBigScreen). We plan to make it a retweet bot thanks to Paul Nicholson. This means you will be able to submit your own Quick Flick Reviews whenever you finish a movie. Thanks to those of you who have already begun to submit those QFR! That is a great part of interacting with this growing community without having to track all the way over to the blog.
Be sure to tell your own friends about this site. The more people we have commenting, the more diverse and interesting the discussions truly become.
----------------------
DVD REVIEW
I Love You, Man
Director: John Hamburg
Cast: Paul Rudd, Jason Segel, Rashida Jones
Screenwriter: John Hamburg and Larry Levin
Run Time: 105 minutes
Release Date: March 20th, 2009
IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1155056/
The Film:
After watching this enjoyable film last night I was left with one lingering thought; Where would we be in this genre if it weren't for the rise of the R-rated comedy brought on by director Judd Apatow? Studios may have never given a green light for a film such as I Love You, Man, or the other popular summer comedy The Hangover, if it weren't for the critical and commercial success of Apatow's films (40-Year Old Virgin and Knocked Up). Well, thank goodness the comedy genre was revived by the R-rating because this was just a great comedy.
The general plot to the film follows Peter Klaven, played by Paul Rudd, who has no close male friend to be his best man at his upcoming wedding. After overhearing his bride to be Zooey, played by The Office alum Rashida Jones, defending him and his lack of friends to her girlfriends, Peter realizes, he needs to make a friend. Beyond that, he needs a BEST friend.
That's the general plot. The real meat of this film occurs as Peter searches for a new friend, and then ultimately finds one in Sydney Fife, played by Jason Segel. You may remember Segel as the leading role in the surprisingly funny Forgetting Sarah Marshall last year. This film struck a chord with me because it was an honest portrayal of the complexity of being friends with a guy. At times, male friendship is weird and at other times as simple as jamming to a common music interest. The movie may get called a "bromance" but that is an accurate title and one that the cast seems to welcome. I truly believe this a film that is enjoyable for both males and females, but I can't help but think a guy is going to take a little more away from it. He will get the heart of this film and appreciate it.
Beyond the main cast, there are some great secondary roles that really add a depth to the humor. Jon Favreau, Jaime Pressly, J.K. Simmons, Joe Lo Truglio, and Rob Huebel all have some shining and heavy laugh-inducing moments.
In the end, considering the lack of quality films and even bigger lack of good comedies, this movie was a great find and deserved the critical praise it earned. Until The Hangover comes out on DVD, this may be the best modern comedy rental for you.
Brandon's Grade = A-
The Extras:
Since this is the first DVD review I should explain that I'm a special features geek. This means, you put them on the disc, more than likely, I'll watch it. I love learning the behind the scenes stuff. A huge pet peeve of mine is when a company puts out a DVD with little to no features on it. I can't justify buying a DVD brand new with nothing on it but the film. So, for me, the decision to purchase a DVD new or wait till I find one used depends heavily on the Extras.
This disc featured a commentary track with the director John Hamburg, and the "bromance" that was played by Paul Rudd and Jason Segel. As a guy who almost always listens to commentary tracks, I really enjoyed this one. It had a great mix of humor and the behind the scenes info a film geek like me craves. For the casual person, I wouldn't say this was the one special feature you should take advantage of though.
Also on the disc was a 17 minute Making Of feature. This feature was mildly entertaining but about what you would expect.
One of my favorite special feature was simply called Extras. This was 22 minutes of alternate lines by the various actors. So many funny bits that didn't make the movie are packed in here. A very nice add in and the one feature you can't pass up even if you don't normally watch the special features on DVD's.
We have 12 minutes of extended scenes and just 3 minutes of deleted scenes. The extended scenes were great. Essentially, if there was a directors cut, these parts would have stayed in the film. The deleted scenes were pretty good too. I can see why they needed to save time but I liked these scenes as well.
Lastly we have an 11 minute Gag Reel. Considering what I saw from the Extras feature, I expected this to have some gut busting moments. Not so much. This bonus content was bookended by montages. While there were some funny crack ups, it didn't really deliver what I was personally hoping for.
As an aside, there are a few Easter Eggs on the disc as well. Unfortunately, they are very short and not really something that is worth spending lots of time looking for.
Brandon's Grade = B
Overall, I thought the movie was great and the special features were solid. Personally, I'll wait for a used copy to purchase around the 10 bucks range. I definitely think the movie is a must-see modern comedy.
Written by Brandon Felder
Already seen the film? Add your own review in the comments section. Agree or disagree with this review, we want to hear your thoughts.
Also, things are happening with our Twitter account (@BeyondBigScreen). We plan to make it a retweet bot thanks to Paul Nicholson. This means you will be able to submit your own Quick Flick Reviews whenever you finish a movie. Thanks to those of you who have already begun to submit those QFR! That is a great part of interacting with this growing community without having to track all the way over to the blog.
Be sure to tell your own friends about this site. The more people we have commenting, the more diverse and interesting the discussions truly become.
----------------------
DVD REVIEW
I Love You, Man
Director: John Hamburg
Cast: Paul Rudd, Jason Segel, Rashida Jones
Screenwriter: John Hamburg and Larry Levin
Run Time: 105 minutes
Release Date: March 20th, 2009
IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1155056/
The Film:
After watching this enjoyable film last night I was left with one lingering thought; Where would we be in this genre if it weren't for the rise of the R-rated comedy brought on by director Judd Apatow? Studios may have never given a green light for a film such as I Love You, Man, or the other popular summer comedy The Hangover, if it weren't for the critical and commercial success of Apatow's films (40-Year Old Virgin and Knocked Up). Well, thank goodness the comedy genre was revived by the R-rating because this was just a great comedy.
The general plot to the film follows Peter Klaven, played by Paul Rudd, who has no close male friend to be his best man at his upcoming wedding. After overhearing his bride to be Zooey, played by The Office alum Rashida Jones, defending him and his lack of friends to her girlfriends, Peter realizes, he needs to make a friend. Beyond that, he needs a BEST friend.
That's the general plot. The real meat of this film occurs as Peter searches for a new friend, and then ultimately finds one in Sydney Fife, played by Jason Segel. You may remember Segel as the leading role in the surprisingly funny Forgetting Sarah Marshall last year. This film struck a chord with me because it was an honest portrayal of the complexity of being friends with a guy. At times, male friendship is weird and at other times as simple as jamming to a common music interest. The movie may get called a "bromance" but that is an accurate title and one that the cast seems to welcome. I truly believe this a film that is enjoyable for both males and females, but I can't help but think a guy is going to take a little more away from it. He will get the heart of this film and appreciate it.
Beyond the main cast, there are some great secondary roles that really add a depth to the humor. Jon Favreau, Jaime Pressly, J.K. Simmons, Joe Lo Truglio, and Rob Huebel all have some shining and heavy laugh-inducing moments.
In the end, considering the lack of quality films and even bigger lack of good comedies, this movie was a great find and deserved the critical praise it earned. Until The Hangover comes out on DVD, this may be the best modern comedy rental for you.
Brandon's Grade = A-
The Extras:
Since this is the first DVD review I should explain that I'm a special features geek. This means, you put them on the disc, more than likely, I'll watch it. I love learning the behind the scenes stuff. A huge pet peeve of mine is when a company puts out a DVD with little to no features on it. I can't justify buying a DVD brand new with nothing on it but the film. So, for me, the decision to purchase a DVD new or wait till I find one used depends heavily on the Extras.
This disc featured a commentary track with the director John Hamburg, and the "bromance" that was played by Paul Rudd and Jason Segel. As a guy who almost always listens to commentary tracks, I really enjoyed this one. It had a great mix of humor and the behind the scenes info a film geek like me craves. For the casual person, I wouldn't say this was the one special feature you should take advantage of though.
Also on the disc was a 17 minute Making Of feature. This feature was mildly entertaining but about what you would expect.
One of my favorite special feature was simply called Extras. This was 22 minutes of alternate lines by the various actors. So many funny bits that didn't make the movie are packed in here. A very nice add in and the one feature you can't pass up even if you don't normally watch the special features on DVD's.
We have 12 minutes of extended scenes and just 3 minutes of deleted scenes. The extended scenes were great. Essentially, if there was a directors cut, these parts would have stayed in the film. The deleted scenes were pretty good too. I can see why they needed to save time but I liked these scenes as well.
Lastly we have an 11 minute Gag Reel. Considering what I saw from the Extras feature, I expected this to have some gut busting moments. Not so much. This bonus content was bookended by montages. While there were some funny crack ups, it didn't really deliver what I was personally hoping for.
As an aside, there are a few Easter Eggs on the disc as well. Unfortunately, they are very short and not really something that is worth spending lots of time looking for.
Brandon's Grade = B
Overall, I thought the movie was great and the special features were solid. Personally, I'll wait for a used copy to purchase around the 10 bucks range. I definitely think the movie is a must-see modern comedy.
Written by Brandon Felder
Already seen the film? Add your own review in the comments section. Agree or disagree with this review, we want to hear your thoughts.
Posts
